Dissociation between recognition and emotional judgements for melodies

Current neuropsychological models of face pereception admit three separate routes for processing information required in the recognition of a familiar face, in the matching of unfamiliar faces and in the analysis of facial expressions. The present study investigated these classes of abilities for music processing in a music agnosic woman, IR, who sustained bllateral cerebral damage. The results show selective sparing of the processing of emothional tone of melodies in the presence of severe deficits in the discrimination and recognition of familiar and unfamiliar melodies. This dissociation supports the existence of two separate routes for the treatment of properties that subserve recognition and emotional evaluation of music.